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Van der Vaart deal confirmed

We are delighted to announce that we have reached agreement with Real Madrid for the transfer of Rafael Van der Vaart.

We are delighted to announce that we have reached agreement with Real Madrid for the transfer of Rafael Van der Vaart.

The Holland international came through the ranks at Ajax and won two league titles during 141 appearances with the Eredivisie side, scoring 60 goals before leaving for Hamburg in the summer of 2005.

The attacking midfielder, 27, was the Bundesliga side's leading scorer in his first season in Germany and went on to captain the side before joining Real Madrid ahead of the 2007/08 campaign.

Rafael has been capped by Holland a total of 83 times, scoring 16 goals, since making his international debut against Andorra in 2001 at the age of 18.

He has since represented the Netherlands at two European Championships and two World Cups, including this summer's tournament in South Africa where he featured five times in the side's run to the Final.